Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC Invests $432,000 in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,230 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $432,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 90.6% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% during the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Delta Air Lines

Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen and UBS both raised their price targets on Delta, reinforcing confidence that the airline’s earnings outlook and valuation can improve. Delta (DAL) Stock Is Up, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: UBS lifted its target to $98 and kept a buy rating, citing a more constructive sector outlook; other recent analyst notes also leaned positive for airline profits and stock performance. Why Some Experts Say Airline Profits—and Stocks—Are About To Take Off
• Positive Sentiment: Falling oil prices are easing jet-fuel cost pressure across the airline group, which is helping airline stocks rally broadly. Airline stocks rally as oil retreat eases fuel cost pressure
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta’s executive vice president Allison Ausband disclosed recent stock sales. Insider selling can create some caution, but the transactions were relatively modest compared with Delta’s market value. Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) EVP Allison Ausband Sells 5,000 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta is also working to improve operations after a rise in flight cancellations, which could matter for summer travel demand, but this is more of an execution issue than an immediate catalyst. Delta’s Flight Cancellations Have Mounted, and It’s Staffing Up to Improve

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. HSBC cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.20 to $79.30 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Delta Air Lines from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total transaction of $4,723,067.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,727,497.35. This represents a 49.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 20,621 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.75, for a total transaction of $1,500,177.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,731,818.75. This trade represents a 14.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 119,635 shares of company stock valued at $8,402,855 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of DAL stock opened at $81.66 on Thursday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52 week low of $45.28 and a 52 week high of $83.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $69.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.72. The firm has a market cap of $53.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.25.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 6.87%.The firm had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.93%.

Delta Air Lines Profile

Delta Air Lines is a major U.S.-based global airline that provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, aircraft maintenance and repair services, and related travel products. Its operations include mainline domestic and international passenger services, a branded regional network operating under the Delta Connection name, dedicated air cargo carriage, and in-house maintenance, repair and overhaul through Delta TechOps. Delta offers a range of cabin products for different customer segments, including premium business-class service on long-haul routes and tiered economy offerings on domestic and international flights, and it markets customer loyalty benefits through the SkyMiles frequent-flyer program.

The carrier operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft from multiple U.S.